'68 383 Charger
Well-Known Member
I did the samething as waygun. added the wire with a fusilbe link between the alternator and starter relay years ago. works like a champ. I also added a voltmeter to keep an eye on the system
ammeter wiring question
- Thread starter hunt2elk
- Start date
anmracing
Well-Known Member
So this will make it a dead gauge, right? Is it possible to make it so that the power is going to the gauge alone? Most of the electical in ours is bypassed but I would like to make it at least work to see any drain... If that is possible...
I was calling them every couple of weeks. Different excuse every time. It's too bad really. I missed a couple of car shows that I was really hoping to attend but there is always next time.
I just bought a brand new one from Year One and getting the guage cluster ready to install this weekend. Then I'll be on the road again....
terzmo
Well-Known Member
I hear this ammeter issue every two or three months and have YET to have anyone in The Western NY area claim their car caught fire because of it. I think it's a "sky is falling " issue and has many shaking in their boots. Owned and driving mopars since 1964...That's My experience and two cents
anmracing
Well-Known Member
That may be true but the only reason I was getting ours done was because it hasn't work for some time and I have never disconnected it until I took it out this year and sent it in.
MRHWS
Well-Known Member
'68 383 Charger
Well-Known Member
I added the wire with fuslible link from the alternator to the batt terminal of the relay years ago, and it works flawlessy on my Charger.
waygun
Well-Known Member
The guage will still work--it will not be as accurate since only half of the current is flowing throught it.
That my friend is the whole point of bypassing the ammeter--taking the load off the bulkhead connector and the guage itself.
Yes,it will still move with the turn signal and brake lights,etc just not as much of a wide swing.
As mentioned,using a voltmeter is a more accurate way to monitor the charging system.
Also wiring up the ammeter directly through the firewall byassing the bulkhead also eliminates any headaches at the bulkhead.
I did a thread on this on another site..with pics and vids.
http://www.cbodydrydock.com/forum_viewtopic.php?5.67917
hope this helps..
Cheers
ArtH
Well-Known Member
I've been reading up on this problem with Chrysler products because I recently bought my first one. I've mostly had GM cars. I've seen seen posts on other forums, not related to Mopar, regarding the risks of ammeters and most advise using a voltmeter instead. That always made sense to me. Anyway, I recently bought a nice 1977 Cordoba and most everything is oem and in decent shape. The car is in the body shop for minor body work and I'm having it painted. I do know the ammeter doesn't work on my car. I don't know if it's just broken or if the previous owner by-passed it. I was pretty much all set to rewire per the instructions by Mad Enterprises but last night I was reading the electrical manual that came with the car. It doesn't look like the Mad rewiring would be necessary. Perhaps a replacement gauge? Be nice, I'm new to these cars. Thanks. NTW, I'll share info from my books if anyone needs it.
waygun
Well-Known Member
Chrysler knew about the problems all along.
In cop cars or fleet vehicles with a heavy electrical loads,the factory bypassed the bulkhead and had an extra wire leading dierectly to the ammeter guage.
By 1973,they did a shunt in the system to help reduce the chances of the bulkhead meltdown.
New C bodies in 1974 saw Chrysler do away with the troublesome bulkhead connector.
By 1976 there were no more bulkhead connecters with the exception of the last A bodies sold.
In cop cars or fleet vehicles with a heavy electrical loads,the factory bypassed the bulkhead and had an extra wire leading dierectly to the ammeter guage.
By 1973,they did a shunt in the system to help reduce the chances of the bulkhead meltdown.
New C bodies in 1974 saw Chrysler do away with the troublesome bulkhead connector.
By 1976 there were no more bulkhead connecters with the exception of the last A bodies sold.
Robj
New Member
One is my 74 Satellite and the other is from the donor that came with it. We ran new wires through their own grommets like the fleet vehicles and that took care of it. When the wires to the ammeter melted under the dash in our Plymouth it fed power to everything full time- the dome light, the dash lights... I was able to harvest the properly colored wires I needed form the donor to splice in the right colors to keep wire tracking easy in the future.
If you haven't addressed the bulkhead connector issue yet you could be living on borrowed time. At least look at it and see if it's beginning to deform around any of the cavities especially around the large gauge wires. Look to see it any of the insulation is deformed or beginning to stick to the wires next to it. We had no unusual draws on this car The radio didn't even work. It had been repaired once before I found out. When I removed the fuse block I could see that somebody had previously taped up the wires that had just burned.
Do yourself a favor and take half an hour and inspect. Unclip the fusebock so you can see the interior side of the bulkhead connector. That's where we had the most burned wires other than the glob o' wire behind the instrument panel that you see below.
Interior side of the bulkhead connector located behind the fuse block:
Wiring from the donor car I have. I'm sure this is why it was retired.
If you haven't addressed the bulkhead connector issue yet you could be living on borrowed time. At least look at it and see if it's beginning to deform around any of the cavities especially around the large gauge wires. Look to see it any of the insulation is deformed or beginning to stick to the wires next to it. We had no unusual draws on this car The radio didn't even work. It had been repaired once before I found out. When I removed the fuse block I could see that somebody had previously taped up the wires that had just burned.
Do yourself a favor and take half an hour and inspect. Unclip the fusebock so you can see the interior side of the bulkhead connector. That's where we had the most burned wires other than the glob o' wire behind the instrument panel that you see below.
Interior side of the bulkhead connector located behind the fuse block:
Wiring from the donor car I have. I'm sure this is why it was retired.
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